Drakon Unchained

by N. J. Walters

  “Mom, are you injured?”

  Katherine shook her head. “Your father protected me.” Sergei puffed out his chest, making his wife laugh. Victoria couldn’t help but smile. The love between the two of them was palpable, not dimmed by two decades of captivity. She could only marvel at that kind of love. She also felt a twinge of envy.

  “Can you shift yet?” Luther asked his father.

  The big dragon swiveled his head back to the collapsed building. “We need to destroy this before I try.”

  The deep voice was so familiar from her childhood it made Victoria’s heart hurt.

  Luther cupped her face in his hand. “I have to take care of this before we go.”

  Victoria cleared her throat and nodded. “Do whatever you need to do.” The faster they could get away from here, the better off they’d be.

  “Do you have your phone?” Luther asked Oscar.

  “No. I lost it in the explosion. It needs to be destroyed.” She knew he was worried about his friends, the people who’d helped them. They could leave nothing behind for Caine to find.

  Luther strode toward the wreckage. He was barefoot and naked but walked straight and surefooted, not even seeming to notice the cold ground or feel the heavy bite of the wind. She did and wrapped her arms around herself and shifted from one stocking-clad foot to the other as the chill radiated through her.

  “Thank you, my dear.” Katherine was standing alongside her. “Thank you for giving my family and my life back.”

  Her heart stuttered. What was she supposed to say to Luther’s mom?

  “Um, you’re welcome.” She wanted to slap her hand against her forehead. That’s the best you can come up with? She was usually so competent, but this was totally beyond her experience.

  Luther began to shift form once again. This time, there was nothing stopping her from watching it happen. Victoria’s breath caught in her throat. His body changed shape, and his giant wings emerged. He was huge and gorgeous, his silvery blue scales reflecting in the moonlight. His tail was as long as his body. In a word, he was spectacular.

  Beside her, Katherine laughed. “They are something, aren’t they?”

  Remember this is his mother. She forced herself to look away long enough to introduce herself. “They are.” The similarity between father and son was uncanny. “I’m Victoria. Victoria Marshall.”

  Katherine’s eyes widened. “You’re little Victoria.”

  “Little Victoria?”

  Katherine smiled and nodded. “That’s what Sergei called you. He told me about you, about meeting you wandering around in the woods. He was worried about you.”

  That warmed her all the way to her soul, driving out some of the biting cold.

  “How did you come to be here?”

  Victoria shrugged. “When Sergei went missing, I knew something had happened to him.”

  “You’ve been looking for him?”

  “My entire life.” And now her quest was done. A blank hole appeared where her future should be. What do I do next? There was no doubt in her mind that the Knights of the Dragon would look for her. Unless of course, they believed she died in the explosion. She’d have to change her name, maybe even leave the country.

  “Look.” Katherine’s quietly spoken request brought Victoria back to the present. They weren’t done yet.

  Father and son stood beside the crumbled remains of the building. They’d spread out so they were both facing an end. Then they inhaled. It was so deep and long, it seemed to suck the very air from the space around them. The entire night went silent, as though holding its breath.

  Then both dragons exhaled. Violet-blue flames tinged with orange emerged from their mouths. Victoria was hit with a backwash of heat that soon had her sweating. The ground heated beneath her feet. She took several steps back, tugging Katherine with her.

  Metal and concrete melted beneath the onslaught.

  Oscar joined them and held out blankets to each of them. She had no idea where he’d found them. “Guess you don’t need these any longer with all that heat.” He stood next to them and watched the amazing scene before them. “By the way, I’m Oscar Denning, ma’am,” he said to Katherine. “Glad you’re safe.”

  “You don’t seem overly surprised by what you’re seeing, Mr. Denning.”

  “Call me Oscar. And, no, I’ve seen a drakon at work before.”

  Victoria tuned out their conversation and watched Luther and his father take breath after breath, the fire a continuous blaze until nothing remained but an empty crater. She noticed Sergei’s fire wasn’t as powerful as Luther’s was. She imagined the drugs were still affecting him.

  Finally, everything was gone—metal, concrete, machinery, wood. There wasn’t even any ash.

  It was an awesome display of power.

  When Caine returned, there would be nothing for him to find or salvage.

  Both dragons ceased spewing fire at the same time. Luther shifted and started walking toward her but stopped in his tracks when the air began to shimmer around Sergei.

  Victoria wasn’t sure he’d be able to shift, not after years of being drugged, of being forced into his dragon form. His body flickered in and out, caught halfway between man and beast. She held her breath and silently encouraged him. Beside her, Katherine inhaled sharply. Victoria couldn’t begin to imagine what she was experiencing at this moment. She hadn’t seen her husband’s human side in so many years.

  Sergei’s human form held, but his knees buckled, and he started to fall. Luther was there to catch him before he hit the ground.

  Father and son were so similar it made her heart ache. If she’d ever seen Sergei in his human form, she would have known in an instant that he and Luther had to be related. But he’d always come to her in his dragon form and had also appeared that way in her visions.

  Sergei straightened and nodded his thanks. Then both men continued toward them—tall and strong and powerful. Katherine ran to her Sergei, who wrapped her in his massive arms. He lowered his head and kissed her.

  Victoria looked away. The moment was too powerful and much too personal to intrude on. Plus, Sergei was naked. Not something she needed to see. Luther stood beside her, watching his parents. The look of wonder and awe on his face made her proud of what they’d done. She nudged him with her elbow and held out her blanket. “It’s not pants, but it will have to do.”

  Luther chuckled and wrapped his arm around her. “Let’s go home.”

  But Victoria had no home. None of them did. And they had the most dangerous group in the world searching for them.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Luther wished he knew what Victoria was thinking. She was quiet in the seat next to him, but that wasn’t surprising considering they were all jammed into their rented SUV heading toward the state border as fast as they could go.

  Thankfully, their vehicle had been parked far enough away from the building that it hadn’t been severely damaged during the explosion, but Caine and his people would be looking for it as soon as they discovered the building gone and the SUV missing. They needed to ditch it as soon as possible.

  They needed a plan, and they needed one quick.

  “Reach under your seat,” Oscar instructed.

  Luther put his hand under the seat and felt along the floor. “What am I looking for?”

  “Phone taped to the top. It’s right at the back of your seat. I planted it before we left the hotel.”

  Luther stretched his arm and made contact with a small plastic case. Oscar was continually surprising him. The man was nothing if not prepared.

  “Now what?” he asked.

  Oscar held out his hand, and Luther reached forward and handed him the phone. Keeping one eye on the road, he dialed. Luther wasn’t quite sure how Oscar had ended up taking charge, but the man was quietly competent and seemed to have resources they didn’t.

  “What the hell is going on?” a deep voice demanded. Oscar had put it on speaker so everyone could hear. Luther and his
father would have been able to hear anyway, but now the women would know what was happening.

  The brusque tone didn’t faze Oscar at all. “We’re all out, but we need help.”

  “Good. What do you need?”

  That was it. No need for explanation, just an offer of help. Luther recognized the voice from Victoria’s vision. This was the drakon Oscar knew, this was Nic.

  “A new vehicle. My new friends kinda destroyed the entire complex before we left.”

  The man on the other end of the phone chuckled. “A little pissed off, were they?”

  “You could say that. And I can’t be sure this vehicle hasn’t been compromised in some way. It may have a tracker other than the one I put here. I don’t want to take the chance.”

  When Oscar glanced in the rearview mirror, Luther looked over his shoulder and peered out the back window. He’d purposely put his parents in the middle row and taken the back seat for himself and Victoria so he could keep an eye on their rear. He saw nothing, but that didn’t mean the Knights weren’t already tracking them.

  “Head to Las Vegas. I’ll text you directions to a storage unit there. Go directly to unit 53 and use the code five, seven, two, eight, four to open it. There’s a blue SUV in there. Leave the one you’re in parked in the unit. When you leave Vegas, get on highway 93.”

  “Got it.”

  Luther was impressed by how organized Oscar and his friends were. But Nic wasn’t finished.

  “Head to Arizona. You know where to go.”

  “Is it safe?” Oscar asked.

  “I’d say yes. There’s been no sign of anyone around since I left.”

  Luther wasn’t happy about having to head to an unknown location. He didn’t like the idea of having to hand over their security to anyone, even if it was only temporary. But he was grateful for the help. And if something came up, he was more than ready to handle it.

  Both his human and his dragon sides needed to take care of his parents and Victoria. Nothing was more important than giving them what they needed. And right now, that was rest, food, a shower, and clean clothes. If that meant relying on Oscar and his friend a while longer, Luther was prepared to suck it up, swallow his pride, and do what was necessary. He might not like it, but he’d do it.

  Shifting to his dragon form took a lot of energy, not to mention destroying an entire building and underground complex. Luther would never say it out loud, but he was exhausted and famished.

  “Can we trust your people?” Sergei asked when Oscar ended the call.

  Oscar didn’t take offense at the question. He just tucked the phone in his pocket. “Yes. They’ll do whatever it takes to protect you and your wife.” He glanced at Luther. “And your son.”

  “My son.” Sergei said the words slowly. His father turned in his seat so he could see Luther. There was a look of wonder on his face, but there was pain in his eyes. “I forgot you.” He sounded bewildered and ashamed. “How could I have forgotten my son?”

  Pain lanced Luther’s heart. The physical and emotion toll on his father had to have been great in order for him to forget. He reached out, gripped his father’s shoulder, and gave it a squeeze. Sergei grasped Luther’s hand and held it tightly.

  “You can’t blame yourself for that,” he told his father. Sergei had been heavily drugged and imprisoned in his dragon form for two decades. It was a wonder he remembered anything at all.

  “My son.” The obvious pride in those two words eased some of the aching emptiness inside Luther. He’d begun to think this day would never come. “I am so proud of you.”

  Luther swallowed heavily, unable to speak. The lump in his throat threatened to choke him. A small, feminine hand rested on his leg and squeezed. He wrapped his free hand around Victoria’s. He really wanted to kiss her, to pull her onto his lap, strip her naked, and make love to her.

  She completed him. She filled all the dusty nooks and crannies of his soul with light. But after what had happened, he wasn’t even sure she’d stay with him. She’d almost died. Staying with him would put her directly in the line of fire with the Knights of the Dragon. If she had a new identity, she could disappear and live a quiet life somewhere away from this war.

  I should let her go.

  The beast inside him roared in displeasure. He’d kept his dragon chained these past two years. His shackles might have been mental ones, but they’d been every bit as strong as those keeping his father prisoner. Now that he’d unchained his dragon, there was no going back.

  He couldn’t let Victoria go.

  Unless she wanted to leave him. It might kill him, but he’d do it if that was what she truly wanted, what she needed. Then he’d spend the rest of his life watching over her. He wasn’t sure he’d live long after she passed. Neither a man nor a dragon could live without their heart.

  “I remember the day you were born.” His father gave his hand a final squeeze before releasing it. Then he leaned toward Luther’s mother and kissed her. “You were so brave, my love.”

  She laughed. The sound was like music to Luther’s ears. He’d grown up with the sound of his mother’s laughter filling their home. He wanted to give Victoria a home and hear her laugh. That gave him pause. He didn’t think he’d ever heard the lighthearted sound pass her lips. That would have to change.

  He released Victoria’s hand and put his arm around her. She’d been through more than most people would face in a lifetime, and she’d done it mostly alone.

  Well, he was with her now, and he would help shoulder her burdens. His were wide and strong. He wanted her to turn to him when she was troubled and share the joys and pleasures of life with her. He only hoped she wanted the same.

  “Luther took his time coming that day.” His mother glanced at him and smiled.

  He’d heard this story a hundred times but sensed Victoria’s interest. Oscar’s as well.

  “I’ve never heard of a drakon having a child,” Oscar began. “I thought there were only the original drakons, the sons of the actual dragons and human women.”

  “And do you know many drakons?” Sergei asked, his tone filled with skepticism and more than a hint of warning.

  Luther didn’t blame his father for having doubts. Even after all Oscar had done, there was a tiny piece of Luther that was having a hard time believing he was on their side. He seemed too good to be true.

  “I know of four, actually. Know one of them better than the others. Drakons are a secretive bunch.”

  Luther wasn’t sure which of them was the most stunned. Victoria looked at him and mouthed, “Four.” He shrugged. Oscar was proving to be a very unusual man.

  “And what four might they be?” his father demanded.

  “Sorry, that’s not up to me to say. I keep their secrets.”

  Luther respected Oscar for that. The group went silent as they sped along the highway. They were all tense and watchful when they eventually reached Las Vegas. It wouldn’t pay to get careless or underestimate the reach of Evan Caine. The man would not give up a drakon without a fight, let alone two of them.

  Oscar followed the GPS directions to the storage unit. It took only a couple of minutes to swap vehicles and they were back on the road. Oscar seemed to know where they were going, but Luther didn’t let down his guard. Everyone important to him was in this SUV.

  If the Knights attacked, Luther didn’t care about keeping secrets and going unnoticed. He’d unleash his dragon side and take out anyone who threatened his mate and his family.

  Consequences be damned.

  …

  Victoria stared out the window as they rolled down the highway in their new SUV, or rather their used SUV. The model was several years out of date but looked as though it had never been used. Who did that? Who had vehicles stashed in storage units across the country?

  She didn’t understand that level of secrecy and planning.

  Oscar had stopped long enough to run into a local Walmart to get clothes for the men. It was only sweatpants and sweaters,
but it was better than having Luther sitting next to her wearing nothing but a blanket.

  She had new shoes as well as a bag with a change of clothes. She had Oscar to thank for that, too. He’d produced a thick stack of cash from an envelope in the vehicle’s glove compartment. There seemed to be no end to the resources at his disposal.

  They’d also stopped at a gas station long enough for everyone to use the facilities. Victoria had taken the time to clean some of the dust and dirt from her face and hands, but she still felt grimy.

  She sighed, and Luther leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Why don’t you try to get some sleep?”

  “I don’t think I can.” She kept her voice low but figured most everyone could hear her anyway. She was exhausted past the point of sleep. Her body was fatigued but her mind wouldn’t stop.

  What will happen now? Her former boss was dead. There was no going back to New York or the life she had there. And she didn’t want to. But where would she go? Were Caine and the Knights already searching for them? Would Luther want her to stay with him?

  Their relationship had been a whirlwind. Maybe it had been the danger heightening their senses that had brought them close together, made them feel as though there was something special between them. She didn’t think so. She still wanted him, in spite of the danger and hardship that lay ahead. And it wasn’t because he was a drakon. It was because he was Luther.

  They’d spent the night together but hadn’t made love. She wondered now if that was a blessing or a curse. If she and Luther parted, she wanted to know what it was like to make love with him. Just once in her life, she wanted to make love with a man who knew who and what she was and wanted her anyway.

  If the opportunity arose, she planned on taking it.

  “Lay your head on my shoulder.” Luther cupped the back of her head and urged her closer to him. “Maybe you can’t sleep, but try to rest.” She tugged the blanket he’d draped over her close.

  In spite of everything they’d been through, he smelled good. Like the crisp winter wind with a hint of wood smoke, the remnants from the fire.